Ministry of Health updates COVID-19 treatment regimen

The Ministry of Health (MoH) has introduced several changes to procedures for the diagnosis, treatment and hospital discharge for COVID-19 patients and called on hospitals to ensure they have sufficient oxygen reserves.
Ministry of Health updates COVID-19 treatment regimen ảnh 1Deputy Minister of Health Tran Van Thuan (standing, centre) and other experts from the Ministry of Health inspect COVID-19 vaccination in the Yen Binh District Medical Station, the northern province of Yen Bai. (Photo: VNA)
Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - The Ministry of Health (MoH) has introduced severalchanges to procedures for the diagnosis, treatment and hospital discharge forCOVID-19 patients and called on hospitals to ensure they have sufficient oxygenreserves.

Atan online conference on COVID-19 prevention and vaccination safety on April 28morning, Associate Professor Luong Ngoc Khue, Director of the Medical ServiceAdministration under the MoH, said in the context of the spread ofCOVID-19 in the world, the risk of pandemic infiltration into Vietnam was verygreat.

Lockdownshave been imposed in neighbouring countries like Laos and Cambodia, whilethe virus is also spreading rapidly in regional nations like Indonesia andthe Philippines.

Aftermore than a year since it first broke out, the SARS-CoV-2 virus hascontinuously changed, creating many different variants, making the virus moreinfectious and difficult to control.

Virusstudies are becoming clearer, so Vietnam has rebuilt the treatment regimen forSARS-CoV-2. This is the fifth update since March 2020.

Inthe new regimen, the MoH classifies five clinical levels, fromasymptomatic, mild, moderate, severe to critical. If the patient has signs ofpneumonia they are classified as moderate.

NguyenVan Kinh, Chairman of the Vietnam Society of Infectious Diseases, said inthe fifth regimen, treatment must be one step ahead to prevent patientsfrom becoming critically ill, so close monitoring of patients is a toppriority.

Toreduce the incidence of serious illness, the MoH recommends as soon as thepatient's blood oxygen level falls below 92 percent, consideration should begiven to appointing high-flow oxygenation through the nasal passages early ornon-invasive mechanical ventilation.

“Indiahad a lot of fatalities because there were no oxygen reserves, people withserious illness had no oxygen and drowned on land. Therefore, medicalfacilities must pay attention to oxygen reserves," Kinh said.

Tobe discharged, previous regimens required patients to have three consecutivenegative tests, each at least 24 hours apart. In the latest regimen, the MoHchanged the regulations.

Now,patients are eligible for discharge from the hospital after at least 14 days oftreatment and with two negative tests, each 48-72 hours apart and the lastsample must be taken no more than 24 hours from the time of discharge./.
VNA

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